The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday upheld the Constitutional validity of the Haryana Backward Classes Act 2016 and referred the petition on the Jat reservation to the National Commission for Backward Classes.

The bench of Justice S S Saron and Justice Lisa Gill today stated that the government had provided the reservation without any adequate data. (Image: PTI)

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday upheld the Constitutional validity of the Haryana Backward Classes Act 2016 and referred the petition on the Jat reservation to the National Commission for Backward Classes, reported TOI. The court has asked the committee to submit the final report by March 31, 2018. Till that time Jat quota will be on hold. The bench of Justice S S Saron and Justice Lisa Gill today stated that the government had provided the reservation without any adequate data. Speaking to reporters soon after HC’s statement, AAG Haryana Lokesh Singhal said, “Constitutional validity of the Haryana Backward Classes Act 2016 has been upheld by Punjab & Haryana HC.

“Punjab & Haryana HC directed state govt to place before Backward Class Commission data collected by it or commission will collect data on basis of which percentage to which extent reservation is to be granted to be determined,” Singhal added.

“Commission to decide issue up to Mar 31,18. Reservation granted to caste mentioned in Class-III to remain in abeyance till then,” he informed reporters. According to a report by News18, the Commission will also submit any objections and suggestions regarding the data by November 30.

On March 29, 2016, the Haryana Backward Classes Bill 2016 was passed unanimously by the state assembly. The bill became an Act on May 12, 2016 and provided reservation to Jats, Sikhs, Mulla Jat Muslims, Bishnois, Rors and Tyagis under the backward class category. According to PTI, these six communities would be entitled to 10 per cent reservation in government services and admission in the educational institutes, if the plea is passed.

Earlier, a Jat organisation demanding reservation had threatened to start a stir if the court rejected the reservation plea. Currently, Jat community constitutes up to 26 per cent of the total population of Haryana.

Seeking directions to set-aside the bill for not being as per the law laid down by the Supreme Court during the Indira Sawhney case, the petitioner stated that the reservation has reached around 70 per cent. According to the law implemented by the apex court, the reservation limit should not exceed beyond 50 per cent.